Publish in Manila times
SOME 700 Philippine Navy personnel and 2,000 United States soldiers
will participate in a 12-day joint Amphibious Landing Exercises near
disputed areas in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea).
Naval Public Affairs Office chief Lt. Cmdr. Marideth Domingo on
Tuesday said the exercises aim to improve inter-operability and combat
readiness of the Philippines and US forces while enhancing security
cooperation in the region.
The land and sea exercises will be held from September 29 to October
10 in several locations in Crow Valley in Subic Bay, Clark Air Field in
Pampanga and in the West Philippine Sea.
In Palawan, the war games will be held in the area of responsibility
of the Naval Forces West, under the Western Command (Wescom), the unit
in charge of overseeing the country’s interest in the disputed West
Philippine Sea.
Under the Wescom’s jurisdiction are the Pag-asa Island group, Ayungin
Shoal, Recto Bank in Palawan and Scarborough Shoal in Zambales.
These areas are considered potential flashpoints as they are also being claimed by China.
The Philippines has brought its territorial dispute with China to
international arbitration that was strongly opposed by the latter.
According to Domingo, the Wescom exercises would include military
exchanges in tactical warfare simulation, amphibious operations,
maritime security planning and command post exercise.
“We would like to come up with amphibious units that will have the
capability to contribute to our national maneuver force, that’s why we
train our Marines,” she explained.
Source: http://www.manilatimes.net/ph-us-troops-hold-military-exercises-disputed-islands/125508/
No comments:
Post a Comment